Beyoncé says an experience where she ‘did not feel welcomed’ spurred her to make ‘Cowboy Carter’ country album

By Alli Rosenbloom, CNN

(CNN) — Beyoncé is taking bets and raising them in hopes that her highly anticipated upcoming country album will render any race-related stigma in that music genre and beyond as “irrelevant.”

The “Texas Hold ‘Em” singer on Tuesday unveiled a new image for “Cowboy Carter,” which she has dubbed as the “act ii” album to her hit 2022 record “Renaissance,” writing in the caption that her latest project “was born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn’t.”

“But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive,” Beyoncé continued, without providing specifics about the experience to which she was referring.

In addition to the two singles off of “Cowboy Carter” she released last month during the Super Bowl – “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” – the Houston native has previously infused country sounds into her other work, including her 2016 track “Daddy Lessons.” Beyoncé performed that song with the Chicks at the CMA Awards that year, and later received racist backlash.

“The criticisms I faced when I first entered this genre forced me to propel past the limitations that were put on me,” the Grammy-winner wrote in her post on Tuesday. “act ii is a result of challenging myself, and taking my time to bend and blend genres together to create this body of work.”

Marking the 10-day countdown to the release of “Cowboy Carter,” Beyoncé also teased a few surprise collaborations on the album that she has in store, writing that she “collaborated with some brilliant artists who I deeply respect.”

“This ain’t a Country album,” she wrote at the end of her post. “This is a ‘Beyoncé’ album. This is act ii COWBOY CARTER, and I am proud to share it with y’all!”

“Cowboy Carter” will be released on March 29.

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